EAGAN, Minn. — A Big Ol' Border Battle is on the way, featuring two high-achieving squads in Week 17.

This will be the 129^th overall meeting between the Vikings (13-2) and Packers (11-4) as the 2024 NFL regular season reaches its penultimate weekend.

Minnesota has already clinched a playoff berth for the second time in three season under Head Coach Kevin O'Connell but still has a shot at the No. 1 seed in the NFC Playoffs.

The Vikings have won their past eight games and tied for the fourth-longest win streak in franchise history, matching a run of eight games in 1998 and 2017. The team is trying to close the season by matching the run of nine by the 1973 squad that went to Super Bowl VIII and 10 by the 1975 team that was upset in the Divisional Round on Drew Pearson's Pushoff. The 1969 Vikings hold the all-time record within one season, responding with 12 consecutive victories after dropping the season opener.

The Packers have clinched a playoff berth for the fifth time in six seasons under Head Coach Matt LaFleur, whose 67 regular-season wins rank second all-time behind 75 by George Seifert through the first six seasons of a coach's career.

Green Bay can't win the division but it can throw a monkey wrench into Minnesota's path. A Packers win would put the Vikings in a place where they need the 49ers to upset the Lions on Monday Night Football and then win at Detroit. A Vikings win would make MNF irrelevant to whether the Vikings or Lions win the NFC North.

Kickoff is 3:25 p.m. (CT), and the game will air nationally on FOX.

Vikings Uniform

The Vikings will wear their modern home uniform combo of purple jerseys and white pants.

4 Storylines

1. Postseason feel

Vikings Defensive Coordinator Brian Flores sensed a "postseason feel" in the win at Seattle.

That atmosphere – described by Flores as electric – definitely will carry into this week's Border Battle, which puts pressure on the Vikings to compose 60-plus more minutes of gritty, competitive execution.

"[They're] really talented across the board, especially offensively. So got our work cut out for us," Flores said. "It'll be a major, major challenge this week, but we'll be at U.S. Bank [Stadium]. I know it'll be loud."

If Minnesota wins its final two regular-season games, it'll match its franchise-record of 15 wins in 1998.

The more you know: Last week was the fifth Vikings game in 2024 decided by three or fewer points (4-1) and moved the team to 8-1 in one-possession games (second best to Kansas City, 11-0). It also boosted O'Connell's record in such games to 25-9, good for the second-highest winning percentage (.735) in NFL history behind Pro Football Hall of Famer Guy Chamberlin (minimum 25 games).

2. Talking tackling

Josh Jacobs has scored 12 of his 13 rushing touchdowns since Week 8.

In that span, he's averaged 84.5 rushing yards on about 20 carries per game. He's also contributed at least 35 yards receiving in four of his past six, which is four more instances than compiled in Games 1-9.

We'll lead with that and then ask: What's the top challenge that this Packers offense presents?

"It's the running back," Flores said. "I think Jacobs is one of the best in the league."

Flores assured that Minnesota's defense has done well at tackling, but, "Josh Jacobs makes me feel like we have to talk about tackling." Entering Week 17 action, Jacobs has forced the second-most missed tackles according to Pro Football Focus (64), tied with Derrick Henry and behind only James Conner (67).

Jacobs' 3.42 yards after contact per rush is the No. 4 mark among RBs with 200-plus attempts per PFF. Furthermore, 48.6% of his rushes have gained more yards than expected as outlined by Next Gen Stats.

"This is going to be a total-team-defense game," Flores emphasized.

Although the Vikings played without key run defender Ivan Pace, Jr., in Week 4, they were able to assuage Jacobs' influence by jumping out to a 28-0 lead at Lambeau Field. That deficit resulted in only four second-half rushes for Jacobs (and a season-low nine total). Boom. There's one winning formula.

Note: Pace was designated to return from Injured Reserve on Tuesday and could play Sunday.

3. Ho! Ho! Hot! quarterbacks

Sam Darnold and Jordan Love are dealing right now.

Both players are on six-game streaks with one or more passing touchdowns since Nov. 17. In that timeframe, they're top three in passer rating at 113.6 and 113.8 – each behind Jared Goff's 120.3 mark (say again, how stacked is the NFC North?) – and own 15:1 and 9:1 touchdown-to-interception splits.

One big similarity over their past six is success stretching the field as Love and Darnold are first and third in yards per attempt (9.2 and 8.2). A notable difference is their general protection; Love has been sacked on four instances in that span whereas Darnold has taken 19 sacks – second most to Caleb Williams' 22.

Overall, Love has been incredibly difficult this year to get on the ground. His 2.79 sack percentage is lowest in the league, and a colossal improvement from 2023 when he was dropped 4.93% of the time.

Darnold hasn't stayed upright as often, enduring a sack on 8.89% of dropbacks. He's one of three QBs to be sacked four or more times in six-plus games this season. Love has zero such games on his 2024 ledger.

4. Takeaway machines

Minnesota and Green Bay are two of the NFL's top defenses at forcing turnovers.

The Vikings are the lone club with a takeaway in every game so far, and rank second with 30 total takeaways and first in interceptions with 22. Green Bay is tied for third with 28 takeaways via 15 picks and 13 fumble recoveries.

In the Week 4 meeting, cornerback Byron Murphy, Jr., snatched two takeaways from the cookie jar, intercepting Love and causing a fumble with a Peanut punch – doing both in the final seven minutes. Packers safety Xavier McKinney also took one away, defusing a red-zone drive by picking off Darnold near the goal line. Both are premier ballhawks, with seven turnovers apiece and 23 combined pass breakups.

Behind Murphy, the Vikings have six others with at least two interceptions – Camryn Bynum has three, and Andrew Van Ginkel, Harrison Smith, Joshua Metellus, Shaq Griffin and Kamu Grugier-Hill have two.

3 Things 'Bout the Packers

1. Defensive weapons

McKinney hardly is the only player with influence on the Packers defense.

First-round picks Rashan Gary, Devonte Wyatt and Lukas Van Ness are responsible for 14.5 sacks. Rookie linebacker Edgerrin Cooper has emerged as a playmaker, with an interception, forced fumble and two sacks in his past five appearances. The secondary features veterans Jaire Alexander and Keisean Nixon, and linebacker Quay Walker brings an eyebrow-raising blend of athleticism and physicality to the heart of the unit.

"He looks about 7-feet tall standing in there," Vikings Offensive Coordinator Wes Phillips quipped.

Walker, by the way, missed the MNF game against New Orleans and was listed as DNP due to an ankle issue on Green Bay's injury report Wednesday. But if he plays Sunday, he's someone capable of greatly impacting Minnesota's run and pass game plans. In Week 4, he registered one sack and eight tackles.

2. On the tight ends

Tucker Kraft belongs in the "top tight end" conversation.

The 2023 third-round draft pick out of South Dakota State leads Packers players with seven touchdown receptions, third most among NFL tight ends, and ranks second at his position with 14.0 yards per catch (min. 50 targets). In Week 4, Kraft was the second-most targeted Packer and finished with a 6-53-1 line.

Green Bay recently got deeper at the position, too.

Luke Musgrave, selected a round earlier than Kraft in the same draft, last week returned to the lineup on Monday Night Football for the first time since suffering an ankle injury against the Vikings that required surgery. Musgrave nabbed three passes in the Week 4 matchup, and he tallied 50-plus yards three times as a rookie.

Their involvement might be drawn into focus if receiver Christian Watson, who exited with a knee injury (later described by LaFleur as a knee bruise) in the second quarter of the 34-0 win over New Orleans, is unable to play Sunday. Kraft and Musgrave are long, strong, and dangerously athletic.

3. 30-point streak

Here's Green Bay's points for in its past five games: 34, 30, 31, 30, 38.

That five-game streak with 30-plus points scored represents the second-longest tear in the NFL this year, behind Buffalo's eight-gamer from Oct. 20-Dec. 15. In fact, it's the second streak of its kind and the only active one, and it's actually quite rare – it's the fifth iteration across the NFL since 2022 of 30-plus in five games in a row.

Green Bay's defense has kept up with its offense throughout those five games, limiting opponents to an average of 14.8 points. In three of the five, the Packers have permitted fewer than 200 net passing yards, and in four of the five they've allowed 80 or fewer rushing yards. Detroit is really the one outlier game.

On Thursday Night Football in Week 14, the Lions survived the Packers 34-31 and generated 280 passing yards and 111 on the ground. That divisional clash also signaled the lone instance in Green Bay's past five – and the second occasion all season – where it finished with fewer than 300 yards of offense.

2 Vikings to Track

Sam Darnold: The QB enters Week 17 with career highs of 3,776 passing yards and 32 touchdowns. Those numbers position him for some unique achievements within Vikings history. With 224 more yards, he'll become the fifth player (ninth instance) of a QB passing for 4,000 yards in a season. With two more touchdown tosses, he'll pass Brett Favre (33 in 2009) for the most in a QB's first season with Minnesota. Daunte Culpepper's 4,717 yards and 39 touchdowns in 2004 are the single-season franchise records.

Aaron Jones, Sr.: Jones will be making his 101^st career start and second against the team that drafted him. The September matchup was quite a homecoming, with Jones rushing 22 times for 93 yards and tying a season high with 46 receiving yards on four catches. Jones needs 14 rushing yards to become the 69^th player in NFL history with 7,000 career rushing yards, and he needs 76 rushing yards to set a new single-season career high (would top 1,121 in 2022).

1 Key Matchup

Vikings secondary vs. Packers WR Jayden Reed

Green Bay's biggest big-play threat is due.

Jayden Reed tortured the backend of Minnesota's defense in Week 4, catching seven passes for 139 yards (19.9 avg.) and a touchdown; three of his receptions gained 20-plus yards, and one went for 42.

But in his past six games, Reed has been relatively quiet – save for scoring twice against Miami in Week 13. He's averaged 30.5 yards receiving on 2.7 catches per game. So, yeah, that leads us to think he's due.

On the season, Reed is tied for sixth among pass-catchers with 11 receptions when targeted at least 20 yards down the field. (For perspective, Vikings stars Justin Jefferson and Jordan Addison have 13 and 11.) Reed's 11 grabs on "deep" targets have averaged 40.6 yards and 31.93 yards per route run, and totaled 100 yards after the catch per PFF.

In Minnesota's win at Lambeau Field earlier this year, Reed routinely settled in zone-coverage holes, and on Green Bay's first touchdown beat Murphy mano a mano with a hesitation-and-go route from the slot.

Reed seemingly unleashes his best against the Vikings, too.

In three career games against Minnesota, the 2023 second-rounder (Jalen "Speedy" Nailor's teammate at Michigan State, by the way) has plated 17 catches on 22 targets for 311 yards and three touchdowns.

Friday Updates …

The following content was added Dec. 27 after initial publication.

Status Report

The Vikings on Friday ruled out cornerback Fabian Moreau with a hip injury. Linebacker Ivan Pace, Jr., was listed as questionable as he returns from a hamstring injury.

Pace is eligible to return to the 53-man roster at any point, but the Vikings would need to make a corresponding roster move.

The other players on Minnesota's injury report, including Harrison Smith, who missed last week with a foot injury, are expected to be available.

Memorable Week 17 Quotes

Brian Flores on recognizing Sam Darnold's arm talent

"Yeah, even in training camp, there were some incredible throws that he made — under duress, in traffic. You're sitting there going, 'All right, the arm talent's real. It's a real thing.' And you'd seen that in previous games, as well. He was a top pick for a reason; I mean, the guy's extremely talented. I just love how much growth we've all seen from his play, the confidence that he's shown. I tell him every time I see him, 'There's our fearless leader there.' Because he is. That's what he's become. I'm just happy for him. You know, everyone's journey in this league is very different. There's ups, there's downs — he's had both, and he's come through, and he's really playing fantastic football."

Matt Daniels on Ryan Wright's performance in Seattle and this season

"That [last punt especially] was huge because that was kind of a situation where we love to pin them inside the 20 but also not give them an opportunity to return it, which we accomplished. That was really good. But you know, it all goes into the preparation for Mr. Wright week-in and week-out. I mean, he's very intentional with his work. Again, I challenge those guys, 'Po' (Andrew DePaola) challenges those guys, and we really expect the most out of them. It just goes into his process, at the end of the day, and it's just good to see that practice execution [also show up in games]. He's playing with supreme confidence right now, which is really what you need at that position — really, at all the specialist positions — is that mental fortitude and to be able to uphold it and withstand anything that could come your way."

Wes Phillips on Darnold overcoming O'Connell's headset going out on the winning drive

"Yeah, that was a hectic moment, for sure. … Kevin complimented those guys, and I would echo, you know, our headset guys really, it was like a pit crew coming in."

Reporter: How quickly did they [get the battery pack fixed]?

"Yeah, he'd given the play and then, I mean, the guy just flashed out of the side of my eye — he was just there. Unhooking stuff, hooking stuff back up, and then we were rolling. It was a great job by those guys."

Levi Drake Rodriguez on playing his first NFL defensive snaps at Seattle

"Yeah, [my phone blew up] after the game. Just a lot of friends and family hitting me up, just saying congratulations. There were some tears shed on my side of the family; they're just very proud and awesome to see the impact that I'm having on my family. … It's awesome, man, it's awesome. My family still can't believe it that I'm, you know, in my position right now. It's eye-opening every single day I walk in this facility. You know, every day isn't promised, so I attacked the [game] day with that mindset."

T.J. Hockenson on Kevin O'Connell receiving game ball following Week 16 win

"K.O., he's one of the best in this league, if not the best coach in this league. For him to have a moment like that, where that (getting 13+ wins twice) has never happened, and he's gotten it done in his first three years, that's huge. It's a credit to who he is as a person, as a coach and as a leader. So we're very fortunate, obviously, to be able to play for him. … [That] just shows the type of program that he set up, the type of culture that he set up here."

Aaron Jones, Sr., on Darnold's toughness

"You can't measure Sammy D's toughness. I don't think there's a measurement [unit] for that. We need him. If it's a close game, he's going to do anything he can to be out there with us. He wants to push that pain aside and be like, 'Hey, I can think about that in 20 minutes. I'll be fine, you guys.' And then you may see him hobbling back out there. He's giving it his all, and that just speaks volumes of him. He plays with his heart. That's another thing you can't measure. It really gets me going. It makes me want to do that much more to protect him when he's back there or when he's throwing the ball, give him that much more time, because like I said, we already know if we give him enough time, we have the best receivers in the in the game, he's going to be able to find one of them open, and it's going to be a big play."

Darnold on the Vikings-Packers rivalry and fan base

"It's awesome, man, to be able to run into Packers fans and, I'm not gonna lie, they're nice and everything, but when you start to talk about football, they're not shy about speaking their mind about who they think the better team is. It's just fun, man. It makes everything more fun. It makes the game more fun. That's the reason we play – is because of the fans and how much energy they bring to toward the sport."

From the Inbox

Aaron Rodgers sat behind Brett Favre. Jordan Love patiently sat through the waning years of Rodgers' reign. What's the controversy with J.J. McCarthy sitting behind Darnold for a couple years?

I can't imagine the relationship with the Vikings would be hurt if the Vikings did a 1-year franchise tag. I'm guessing the opportunity to compete for a Super Bowl will have some influence.

Let's hope O'Connell stays humble and doesn't start believing all the QB whisperer hype. I believe it, but I don't want him to buy into it. Tempting to believe the Vikes could win next year with Daniel Jones, but I think we might discover it's not always this easy to catch lightning in a jar.

— Jim Scheibe in Stillwater, Minnesota

The Packers have a couple of "generations" of quarterbacks for deploying this plan as evidence it can work.

It is one of several options the Vikings will consider in the offseason, but players and coaches are focused on the big task at hand, and that's finishing the regular-season home slate against the Packers before even thinking about the Lions in Week 18.

Take it for what it's worth, but I'm not seeing "controversy." There's such a culture within this team of supporting teammates, and that is sincerely true in the quarterbacks room, as well as a firm belief in doing what is best for the team.

There are subsections of folks who thrive on "controversy" for content or ratings, and I'm not trying to say there's always 100-percent agreement in any organization, but we have been able to observe demeanor, and hear Sam talk about how much he is enjoying this experience here in Minnesota.

His quote above shows how much he gets the Border Battle rivalry and has embraced it.

I'm also not saying people shouldn't discuss potential outcomes and options, but I would like to remind people there will be plenty of time after the season.

The Packers are coming with a head of steam, and this is the game to bring the running game to full power — also the screen pass can accomplish the same thing.

— Sandy H.

The Vikings were able to have a nice balance between the run game and passing game in Week 4 at Lambeau Field.

Minnesota rushed 34 times for 120 yards and totaled 30 pass plays (28 attempts and two sacks) that netted 254 yards. Part of that ending balance was the fact that the Vikings built the 28-0 lead by late in the second quarter and used 20 run plays in the second half.

Jones showed his ability to be a complete running back, and Cam Akers has since been added to the mix.

Minnesota is 11-0 this season when finishing a game with more rushing yards than its opponent.

Doesn't anyone in the coaching staff see Darnold holding on to the ball too long? Darnold needs to run plays where he can make his reads quicker cause him holding the ball in crunch time games is a killer when we lose yardage. Someone has to notice this by now?????

— Henry Lopez

I'm sure the Vikings coaches assess every aspect of each game, including causes for sacks or pressures, as well as why there might be an extra hitch or two during a play.

I also think there's a comprehensive amount of evidence supporting how well Darnold has played and improved as the Vikings have continued winning. It was clutch to get out to that 5-0 start while the system was so new. Minnesota incorporated and relied on different players when Addison or Hockenson were unavailable earlier this season, and there have been multiple ways to win games.

The Vikings do attack with some longer-developing plays and have consistently pushed the ball down the field.

I just wanted to point out that the Vikings are undefeated since Jamie Erdahl sounded the Gjallarhorn before the Colts game. As a native Ohioan, I really didn't know much about her. But I've been so impressed with her excitement and passion for the Vikings, as well as all things football. Just another special moment in a magical season. Such a class move by the Vikings organization to bring her home! Love that national media attention, as well, so even here in Ohio we can appreciate how awesome our Vikings organization is!

Thanks for keeping us informed!

— Mike D.

Yep, there is an overlap with Jamie doing an incredible job of sounding the Gjallarhorn and the Vikings starting this current 8-game winning streak.

She showcased her authentic joy in that moment, and it's cool that others have learned more about her current position and career trajectory, which has roots in Minnesota that she still values, appreciates and applies. I don't know her personally, but it does seem that she has been foundationally based in building up others in her approach to the profession.

Not to take anything away from Jamie, but there's also an overlap with Hockenson returning to action for the Vikings and the start of the win streak.

The biggest coincidence, however, is the fact that this is a really good team with a legitimate shot to keep making a great season even better.